It Reminded Me of You
by EquusGirl
Summary: Han enjoys getting Leia little trinkets on his runs. Or, one way he says 'I love you.' Part of the '100 Ways Series'


"What's this?" Leia looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. Han tried to ignore the way his stomach did a nervous flip as she toyed with the slender box he'd just handed her. He'd picked the gift up on a whim and endured Chewie's teasing the whole way home.

"Guess you'll just have t'open it t'find out," he said, fixing her with a crooked smile and shrug. She rolled her eyes and eyed him for another moment before pulling on the end of the simple string tied around the gift.

_DUMB IDEA!_ He pushed the thought away; too late. It's not like he could just rip it out of her hands now. Impulse control had never been one of his strong suits.

He chewed on the inside of his cheek as her eyes widened and her mouth formed a little 'o'. "I- wh-?" She stumbled over her words as she ran her fingers over the carved bone hairpin he'd picked up from a small market stall on Nar Shaddaa. "It's _beautiful_. But…" She looked up at him again, confusion pulling her eyebrows together as her jaw worked but no sound came out.

He shrugged again, aiming for nonchalance. **"It reminded me of you."** More specifically, the hair pin reminded him of the night she'd come to him looking stressed with dark circles under her eyes, saying she needed a criminal's opinion. He hadn't been sure whether to be flattered or offended. She was good at those backhanded compliments. But they'd spent the night in her office, pouring over personnel files and schematics, Goldenrod occasionally butting in. Han had been surprised when she'd brought out a bottle of whiskey and even more surprised when she'd started pulling pins out of her hair.

He'd been mesmerized as she shook out the braided strands and ran her hands through the wavy tresses before twisting them into a simple bun at the nape of her neck, held in place with a spare stylus.

"Han, I…" She shook her head, words apparently still failing her.

He rolled his eyes good naturedly. "Just say 'thank you' and accept it, Your Worship." He'd never seen her in anything but intricate braids and there had been something oddly intimate about witnessing the whole ritual. But ever since, he hadn't been able to escape the thought that with as beautiful as her hair was, she should have something as equally beautiful to secure it. Not just some stylus.

"_Thank you_, truly," she said, her expression sincere and eyes shining.

"S'nothing, really." He was just relieved she liked the gift and hadn't thought he'd overstepped.

She stared at him for a few long moments before she opened her mouth and then seemed to think twice. She shook her head, eyebrows knitting together. "No, it's not nothing," she said quietly.

Han simply smiled and waved her off, turning to head back to the Falcon. "Have a good evening, Princess," he called.

* * *

Leia watched Han's retreating back and then looked back down at the hair prong. It was a beautiful piece, seemingly carved from bone and topped with a beautifully executed orchid. He seemed to think it wasn't a big deal (and she was slightly relieved by that) but to her, hair ornaments weren't _nothing_. And it had been a painfully long time since someone had cared about her hair.

He'd inadvertently just gifted her something special; something she'd cherish. With one last glance as Han disappeared around the corner, she proceeded to her office, holding the box to her chest. Her evening was sure to be a long one, she had a stack of reports to go through and budget requests to approve or deny.

Hours later, Leia was still at her desk and still staring at several more hours of work. She sighed and prodded at her tight braids, a dull ache beginning to form at the base of her skull. She might actually prefer these late nights to days when she had too much free time, but this much time with pins in her hair usually resulted in wicked headache. One would think she'd learn to anticipate them but she was often too distracted until they demanded her attention.

She eyed the box containing Han's gift, the night they'd spent in this office flashing in her mind. That night she'd pushed her tolerance to the extreme until she couldn't think clearly anymore. Taking out her pins and braids had been such a relief but then she had been faced with not having anything else to secure her hair with. And leaving it free was a pain of a different kind. So she'd made do. Han must have remembered the night too. With a small smile on her face, she started pulling the pins out of her hair.


End file.
